Wayne Hills High School Student Wins NJ-11 Congressional App Challenge
Parsippany, NJ–– Representative Mikie Sherrill (NJ-11) announced today that Wayne Hills High School student Ishan Sinha is the winner of the 2022 Congressional App Challenge for New Jersey's 11th District for his app, “Shelter House.”
Shelter House provides users with information on local shelters for people experiencing homelessness and allows the user to search shelters based on location. The app includes important information about the facility, including how many units it has and which populations it serves. Since Shelter House is integrated with the phone and map features of your cell phone, users can call or get directions to the shelter right from the app.
To watch a video explanation of Shelter House, click here.
“Each year the Congressional App Challenge offers NJ-11 students an opportunity to think both creatively and technically to produce an app for our judges’ consideration. This year, our winner is Ishan Sinha from Wayne Hills High School for his app, ‘Shelter House.’ This app both gives back to our community and works to improve it by aiding our neighbors facing homelessness,” said Rep. Sherrill. “Congratulations Ishan! Many thanks to our judges and all of our participants this year.”
"I would like to congratulate Ishan Sinha on winning this prestigious award for creating the ‘Shelter House’ App. I commend him for giving of his time and talent in service to helping others and I am confident that Ishan’s commitment and dedication to excellence will enhance his ability to succeed in his future endeavors," said Wayne Mayor Christopher Vergano.
“We are all very impressed with Ishan’s app and how useful it will be for those looking for resources about homeless shelters. His knowledge of the different languages needed to create the app is extraordinary. He is a caring young man who is applying his gifts to help others. Congratulations Ishan!” said Wayne Hills High School Principal Michael Rewick.
Thirty-three students representing 13 schools in the district participated in the App Challenge this year. Judges scored apps based on functionality, creativity, and user experience. The NJ-11 panel of judges included:
Alfred Bentley III, PhD, vipHomeLink
Samuel Joisil, Picatinny Arsenal
Tiffany Mills, Picatinny Arsenal
Ralph C. Tillinghast, PhD, Picatinny Arsenal
Dr. Hongbo Zhou, Montclair State University
The Congressional App Challenge, launched in 2014, is designed to engage student creativity and encourage their participation in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math (STEM) education fields. The winner's App is eligible to be displayed in the U.S. Capitol Building and featured on the U.S. House of Representatives' website, House.gov.
The competition was open to middle school and high school students who live or attend school in NJ-11. Teams may include students from other Congressional districts as long as at least half of the team is from the same district. The full set of eligibility rules for individual and team entries can be found at https://www.congressionalappchallenge.us/.
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